HELP PROMOTE POLLINATORS
Habitat: What Do Pollinators Need?
Palouse Pollinator Working Group
Promoting Pollinators on the Palouse
The Palouse Pollinator Working Group is an organization of concerned citizens who know the invaluable service pollinators play in keeping our ecosystems and farms healthy. We have banded together to spread awareness of the need to protect these extremely important creatures and their habitats.
2026 6th Inland Northwest Pollinator Summit
March 25: Wednesday 2:00-5:00 PM
See speakers bios below
2 PM Opening remarks Suvia Judd
2:15 PM What is Habitat? Megan Foard
3:15 PM Home is where the Habitat is: Butterflies of the Pacific Northwest and their Habitats. David G James (WSU Prosser)
Different butterflies need different habitats. Every butterfly has its own special habitat needs and exists somewhere on the continuum from those that can thrive almost anywhere to those that are extremely picky and restricted to a single, uncommon habitat. I will provide PNW butterfly examples of habitat generalists and specialists and those that fall between these extremes. You will also learn which plants are key in supporting PNW butterfly communities.
4:15 PM 2. The Unheralded Pollinators: Habitat Needs for Moths, Wasps, Beetles, and True Bugs. David G James (WSU Prosser)
5:00 PM Dinner Break
March 25th Evening Program 6-8 PM
6:00 PM Hands on Workshop: Pollinator Garden Design. Susan Fluegel (experienced landscaper and pollinator garden designer) and
Suvia Judd (trained in resilient landscape design)
March 26: Thursday Morning Program
10:00 AM Opening remarks. Suvia Judd
10:15 AM Supporting pollinators from the ground up by taking plants seriously: Owen Baughman
Pollinators of course rely on their plant hosts. Plants and plant communities are more diverse than meets the eye. Plant-insect interactions are complex and are strongly related to plant community genetics and health. Not all native plant habitat helps pollinators, for example if herbicide drift or high roadside insect fatality rates offset the benefits. Doing plant restoration correctly with consistent success in very difficult, but there are some key principles to follow for improved chances of success: pay attention to plant transfer guidance, support regional native plant partnerships, balance experience with new evidence and changing recommendations.
10:50 AM Improving Native Pollinator Habitat with Plant Diversity: Includes plant results from local Palouse pollinator study. Susan Fluegel
Find out why plant diversity matters to native pollinators. See what combination of native and exotic plants will bring all the pollinators to your yard. Includes many beautiful but practical plants that are low care even for beginners.
Break
11:30 AM A Pollinator Plant for Every Season by Suvia Judd, with Deborah B, and Pam Brunsfeld contributors
Lunch
Thursday Afternoon Program:
12:45 PM Moscow Bee City USA Program and Projects. City of Moscow staff.
1:15 PM The Habitat Needs of Local Hummingbirds. Pollinator Working Group.
1:50 PM How to Provide Habitat for Fantastic Flies. Susan Fluegel
Everyone knows that bees are important for pollination, but what about flies? Flies are second only to bees in their pollinating skills. They help pollinate over 70% of plants used for food. Learn how to provide habitat for these unrecognized pollinators without antagonizing your neighbors.
Break
Progress towards an Idaho bee checklist publication. Luc Leblanc (UI)
The University of Idaho's Barr Entomological Museum has teamed up with the Idaho Bee Atlas team to compile and publish a checklist of the bees of Idaho based on field surveys, museum specimens and literature review. Over 650 species are confirmed to be present in the state. We introduce the research process, using Lasioglossum bees as an example.
Supporting Pollinators in your Inland Northwest Landscape. Rae Olsson (WSU)
With an estimated 20-25,000 species of bees in the world, and over 1,000 species in the Pacific Northwest, it can be intimidating to know how to support our pollinator communities. Dr. Olsson will go over strategies to providing essential pollinator resources to support the diversity of pollinating insects in our region. They will discuss some critical times of the year to provide resources, and when to let things rest for optimum pollinator outcomes.
3:45 PM Pollinator Plate: Habitat Needs of Pollinators Summary by Pollinator Working Group
INLAND NORTHWEST POLLINATOR SUMMIT 2026
Habitat: What Do Pollinators Need?
Speaker Abstracts and Bios
Dr. Meghan Foard
Bio: Dr. Meghan Foard is the Senior Ecology Instructor at the University of Idaho with over 20 years of professional experience in ecology and plant sciences. She holds a PhD in Water Resources and an MS in Environmental Science, specializing in natural disturbances, dendrochronology, and invasive species.
Her research background is extensive, including leading interdisciplinary studies as a National Science Foundation PhD Fellow. Additionally, she has conducted research for the United States Forest Service and created comprehensive botanical inventories for the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission. Dr. Foard has authored several peer-reviewed publications regarding the ecological impacts of climate change and invasive species on native biodiversity.
Education is Meghan’s true career passion. She volunteers to teach local and regional K-12 students as often as she can. She has also developed 10 distinct curricula, including Wildland Systematic Botany, Restoration Ecology, and Mountain Ecology. She also served as an invited speaker at the Palouse Pollinator Summit last year. .
Dr. David G James
Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center, Washington State University, Prosser, WA
Bio: David developed a passion for entomology at the age of 8 in England by rearing caterpillars in his bedroom. He obtained his undergraduate degree in Zoology at the University of Salford in the UK, then migrated to Australia for a PhD and to work for the New South Wales Department of Agriculture in Sydney researching agricultural pests and their management using non-chemical methods like biological control, pheromones and habitat restoration. A 50-year career as a biocontrol, IPM, pollinator and conservation biology scientist in Australia and the Pacific Northwest, followed. David has published almost 300 peer-reviewed scientific papers and extension articles and has authored a number of books on butterflies and moths, including his most recent “The Lives of Butterflies” and the “Life Histories of Cascadia Butterflies” which David Attenborough called “Magisterial”.
Dr. Luc Leblanc
Bio: Dr. Leblanc has over 40 years of experience in the fields of insect taxonomy research, managing insect collections, and implementing plant protection-related projects in Africa and the South Pacific Islands. He is the curator of the William F. Barr Entomological Museum, at the University of Idaho and teaches their Insect Identification course. His main research focus is on the taxonomy, ecology and control of the tropical pest fruit flies that are regularly detected as invasive species in California and Florida.
Owen Baughman
Bio: Owen Baughman is a plant Ecologist and passionate native plant advocate with 20 years of experience thinking about management and restoration of native plants, mostly in Western high desert ecosystems. He has a BA in Ecology and Conservation Biology from University of Idaho ('10) and an MS in Plant Ecology from University of Nevada Reno. He has worked as a researcher for UNR and The Nature Conservancy, and currently manages the Salmon Valley Stewardship Native Plants Program in Salmon ID.
Dr. Rae Olsson
Bio: Dr. Rae Olsson is an assistant professor in the department of Entomology at Washington State University. They found their love of entomology through a love of gardening and food- insects are crucial in agriculture as pests and beneficials, and Rae wants to preserve our ability to grow good food as sustainably as possible so they have access to a variety of delicious things to grow and cook. Their research has focused primarily on pollination and pollinator ecology, and recently they have also found a strong interest in Forensic Entomology.
Suvia Judd
Bio: Suvia Judd is the current board chairperson of Rural Roots ( ruralroots.org). She is a retired small acreage farmer and plant nursery owner, and has lived on the Palouse for forty years. She loves equally to walk in wild places and observe the natural communities and to stay home and putter in her gardens. She especially enjoys growing any kind of squash, Romano pole beans, anything with fruit, and flowers that attract pollinators. She has degrees in biology, public health nutrition, and law, and values ecological literacy highly. Her research experience includes amphibian population biology, wilderness water quality, and using browse plants to supplement camelid pastures. She is a certified permaculture designer.
Susan Fluegel
Bio: Susan Fluegel, PHD, has a background in entomology, agriculture, organic farming and cultivating rare tropical plants. She has practical experience with landscaping and pollinator research. Susan enjoys teaching plant propagation and epigenetics. Her PHD is in Nutritional Biochemistry and her passion is researching how energy flows through a system; whether it be an ecosystem, a plant, or a human being. Susan’s hobbies include lecturing unsuspecting people about mitochondria, researching human metabolic health disorders, and digital art.
What Is The Pollinator Working Group?
The Palouse Pollinator Working Group was founded in 2019, when Rural Roots approached Latah County Extension and the Palouse Environmental Sustainability Coalition (PESC) about creating a working group of regional stakeholders concerned about dwindling regional pollinator populations. Other groups came on board and beginning in 2020 the new group began putting on an annual educational event, the Pollinator Summit (now “The Inland Northwest Pollinator Summit.")
The 2026 Inland Northwest Pollinator Summit, March 25 and 26 at the 1912 Center in Moscow, will be our Seventh!)
This years Palouse Pollinator Working Group volunteers come from the following organizations:
City of Moscow Sustainability Office
Palouse Clearwater Environmental Institute
Palouse Prairie Foundation
Rural Roots
University of Idaho Barr Entomological Museum
MISSION
To establish, maintain, and protect healthy pollinator populations across the Palouse Bioregion
GOALS
1) To educate residents about pollinators and their needs
2) To empower residents to make individual and community changes to support pollinators and enhance pollinator habitat
3) To bring together stakeholders to share information, create joint projects, and reach a broad audience
4) To facilitate pollinator research and support pollinator researchers
5)To bring current pollinator research to the public
6) To promote practical applications of pollinator research, especially in our region.
PROJECTS
The Inland Northwest Pollinator Summit (annual event).
Promoting Moscow, ID as a Bee City.
New website (you are here!) to share information about pollinator education, research, and habitat restoration in our region.
